Shows opening and planned for this year’s Broadway season: Some old friends, some new thinking, and…

October 29, 2018

…a number of shows that I won’t be seeing. I love musicals at the wonderful old Winter Garden, but I won’t head there to see Tootsie remade as a tune fest. Nor do I want to see Beetlejuice set to music. I loved Jersey Boys, but The Cher Show sounds dicey and I’m guessing that Archie, a musical send up of the comic strip, won’t make it through previews.

On the other hand, I have high hopes for The Prom, To Kill a Mockingbird, All My Sons, and Glengarry Glen Ross.

King Kong sounds like a fun, larger-than-life spectacle. And it definitely time for a new mounting of Torch Song—under Moises Kaufman’s direction, Harvey Fierstein’s masterpiece is in good hands.

Here’s the latest rundown of what’s hitting the boards.

SCHEDULED FOR THE 2018–19 BROADWAY SEASON
(organized by start of previews)

KING KONG
• Theatre: Broadway Theatre
• First Preview: October 5, 2018
• Opening: November 8, 2018
• Written by Jack Thorne (book), Marius de Vries and Eddie Perfect (score)
• Director and choreographer: Drew McOnie
• A musical adaptation of Merian C. Cooper and Edgar Wallace’s novella.
• King Kong had its world premiere at the Regent Theatre in Melbourne, Australia.

AMERICAN SON
• Theatre: Booth Theatre
• October 6, 2018
• November 4, 2018
• Written by Christopher Demos-Brown
• Director: Kenny Leon
• Cast: Kerry Washington and Steven Pasquale
• A Florida police station in the middle of the night; a mother searching for her missing teenage son. American Son is a gripping tale of two parents caught in our national divide, with their worst fears hanging in the balance.

THE PROM
• Theatre: Longacre Theatre
• First Preview: October 21, 2018
• Opening: November 15, 2018
• Written by Bob Martin (book), Chad Beguelin (lyrics), Matthew Sklar (music)
• Director: Casey Nicholaw
• Cast: Beth Leavel, Brooks Ashmanskas, Christopher Sieber
• An original musical about a gay couple who want to attend their high school prom.
• Had a premiere production at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta in August 2016. Producers are Dori Berinstein and Bill Damaschke.

THE NEW ONE
• Theatre: Cort
• First Preview: October 25, 2018
• Opening: November 11, 2018
• Written by Mike Birbiglia and Jennifer Hope Stein
• Directed by Seth Barrish
• Latest solo show from Birbiglia.

THE CHER SHOW
• Theatre: Neil Simon
• First Preview: November 1, 2018
• Opening: December 3, 2018
• Book by Rick Elice. Music by various composers.
• The musical traces the career of pop star Cher
• The Cher Show premiered at Chicago’s Oriental Theatre June 12–July 15, 2018.

CHOIR BOY
• Theatre: Samuel J. Friedman
• Previews begin: December 12, 2018
• Opening: January 8, 2019
• Written by Tarell Alvin McCraney
• Director: Trip Cullman
• For half a century, the Charles R. Drew Prep School for Boys has been dedicated to the education of strong, ethical black men. One talented student has been waiting for years to take his rightful place as the leader of the legendary gospel choir. But can he make his way through the hallowed halls of this institution if he sings in his own key?

BE MORE CHILL
• Theatre: Lyceum
• First Preview: February 13, 2019
• Opening: March 10, 2019
• Score by: Joe Iconis
• Director: Stephen Brackett
• Based on Ned Vizzini’s novel, the show tells the story of an average teenager (currently played Off-Broadway by Dear Evan Hansen‘s Will Roland), who takes a pill purported to make people more—you guessed it—chill.

AIN’T TOO PROUD–THE LIFE AND TIMES OF THE TEMPTATIONS
• Theatre: Imperial
• First Preview: February 28, 2019
• Opening March 21, 2019
• Written by Dominique Morisseau
• Director: Des McAnuff
• Choreographer: Sergio Trujillo
• A musical tracing the rise of R&B group The Temptations.
• Had a premiere production at Berkeley Repertory Theatre. A Kennedy Center production will be followed by an L.A. engagement (August 21–September 30) and a Toronto production (October 10–November 17).

KING LEAR
• Theatre: Golden
• First Preview: February 28, 2019
• Opening: April 4, 2019
• Director: Sam Gold
• Cast: Glenda Jackson, Elizabeth Marvel, Jayne Houdyshell, Ruth Wilson, Pedro Pascal
• Fresh off of winning a Tony Award for Three Tall Women, Jackson will return to the role of Lear (which she played to great acclaim in London’s West End) in a brand-new production.

GARY: A SEQUEL TO TITUS ANDRONICUS
• Theatre: Booth
• First Preview: March 5, 2019
• Opening: April 11, 2019
• Written by: Taylor Mac
• Director: George C. Wolfe
• Cast: Nathan Lane, Andrea Martin
• The play takes place just after the conclusion of William Shakespeare’s first tragedy, Titus Andronicus. Set during the fall of the Roman Empire, the years of bloody battles are over, the civil war has ended, and the country has been stolen by madmen. There are casualties everywhere and two very lowly servants (played by Lane and Martin) are charged with cleaning up the bodies.

HILLARY AND CLINTON
• Theatre: TBA
• First Preview: March 16, 2019
• Opening: April 18, 2019
• Written by: Lucas Hnath
• Director: Joe Mantello
• Cast: Laurie Metcalf, John Lithgow
• The play aims to explore the politics of marriage and gender roles as Hillary, a former First Lady, is at odds with her husband Bill and her campaign manager Mark as she attempts to salvage her bid for President of the United States during the 2008 primaries. Sound familiar?

BEETLEJUICE
• Theatre: Winter Garden
• First Preview: March 2019
• Opening: April 25, 2019
• Writers: Score by Eddie Perfect; book by Scott Brown and Anthony King
• Director: Alex Timbers
• A musical version of the supernatural 1988 film comedy about a couple who hire an exorcist to remove a very naughty ghost from their new house. The world premiere will be performed at Washington, D.C.’s National Theatre in October 2018, starring Alex Brightman and Sophia Anne Caruso.

TOOTSIE
• Theatre: Marriott Marquis
• First Preview: March 29, 2019
• Opening: April 23, 2019
• Music and lyrics by David Yazbek
• Book by Robert Horn
• Choreography by Denis Jones
• Director: Scott Ellis
• Based on the film, Tootsie tells the story of a talented but difficult actor who struggles to find work until an audacious, desperate stunt lands him the role of a lifetime.

INK
• Theatre: Samuel J. Friedman
• First Preview: April 2, 2019
• Opening: April 24, 2019
• Written by James Graham
• Director: Rupert Goold
• It’s 1969 London. The brash young Rupert Murdoch purchases a struggling paper, The Sun, and sets out to make it a must-read smash which will destroy – and ultimately horrify – the competition. He brings on rogue editor Larry Lamb who in turn recruits an unlikely team of underdog reporters.

BURN THIS
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2018–2019 Season
• Written by Lanford Wilson
• Director: Michael Mayer
• Cast: Adam Driver, Keri Russell
• Revival of the Wilson play about Pale, a restaurant owner who falls for a dancer named Anna in downtown New York in the 1980s, and their troubled relationship in the wake of a shared tragedy—the death of Pale’s brother and Anna’s roommate and dance partner.

IN THE WORKS13 GOING ON 30
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book by Josh Goldsmith and Cathy Yuspa, music and lyrics by Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner
• Director: Andy Fickman
• Cast: TBA
• A gawky teenage girl uses “wishing dust” to transform herself into a glamorous adult.
• New musical based on the 2004 hit movie of the same title.

17 AGAIN
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book by Marco Pennette, music and lyrics by Alan Zachary and Michael Weiner
• Director: Adam Shankman
• Cast: TBA
• New musical based on the 2009 Zac Efron fantasy film about a man who gets to relive his youth.
• A developmental lab was held in New York November 2016.

BEACHES
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by David Austin (music), Iris Rainer Dart (lyrics & book), Thom Thomas (book)
• Director: Eric Schaeffer
• Cast: Whitney Bashor, Shoshana Bean
• Vivacious, outlandish Cee Cee and beautiful, privileged Bertie meet as children and become fast friends. From pen-pals to roommates to romantic rivals, Cee Cee and Bertie’s oil-and-water friendship perseveres through even the most tragic trials.
• Beaches continued its development with a second regional production at Drury Lane Theatre in Chicago, June–August 2015.THE BEST LITTLE WHOREHOUSE IN TEXAS
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Carol Hall (music & lyrics), Peter Masterson and Larry L. King (book)
• Director and Choreographer: Rob Ashford
• Cast: TBA
• Whorehouse recounts the good times and the demise of the Chicken Ranch, known since the 1850s as one of the best pleasure palaces in all of Texas…that is, until the crusading television reporter Melvin P. Thorpe focuses his cameras and his righteous indignation on the institution.
• Jerry Frankel and Jeffrey Richards will produce this revival.

THE BODYGUARD
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Alexander Dinelaris (book) based on Lawrence Kasdan’s screenplay, with a score of pop hits by various composers.
• Director: TBA
• Cast: Deborah Cox
• New musical adapted from the Whitney Houston film about a pop star who falls in love with her bodyguard.
• Originally presented in London, the stage musical is currently on a North American tour.

BULL DURHAM
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Susan Werner (music and lyrics), Ron Shelton (book)
• Director: TBA
• Cast: TBA
• A musical version of the film about a romance set in the world of minor league baseball, being produced by Jack Viertel.
• A world-premiere production starring Will Swenson had a run at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta in 2014.

CAMP DAVID
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Lawrence Wright
• Director: Molly Smith
• Cast: TBA
• A drama about President Jimmy Carter’s Nobel Prize-winning efforts to bring the leaders of Israel and Egypt to sign a peace agreement after years of war.
• Camp David had its world premiere at Washington D.C.’s Arena Stage in 2014. It played a pre-Broadway engagement at The Old Globe in San Diego May 13–June 19, 2016. It is scheduled to be produced on Broadway by Steve Traxler and Gerald Rafshoon.

CHASING RAINBOWS
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book by Marc Acito. Music from the EMI/Feist Robbins catalog, All rights administered by Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC. Conceived by Tina Marie Casamento. Musical Arrangements by David Libby. Additional music by David Libby, and additional lyrics by Casamento/Acito/Libby.
• Cast: TBA
• The musical traces the early life of Judy Garland, from her small-town birth to her starring role in the film classic The Wizard of Oz.
• The show had a developmental world premiere production in Flat Rock, N.C., in November 2015, and a full production at Goodspeed Musicals in September 2016.

DAMN YANKEES
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Richard Adler and Jerry Ross (music and lyrics), George Abbott and Douglass Wallop (book)
• Cast: TBA
• Director: Kathleen Marshall
• Revival of the 1956 musical about a baseball fan who is induced to sell his soul by the devil so his favorite team can win the pennant.
• Produced by Jeffrey Richards, Scott Landis, Jerry Frankel, and Jay and Cindy Gutterman.

THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Music by Elton John. Lyrics by Shaina Taub. Book by Paul Rudnick.
• Cast: TBA
• Being produced by Bob Cohen of Fox Stage Productions and Kevin McCollum
• New musical based on Lauren Weisberger’s 2003 novel and the 2006 film about a woman who becomes assistant to the notorious editor of a topline fashion magazine.

DINER
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Sheryl Crow (music and lyrics), Barry Levinson (book)
• Director: Kathleen Marshall
• Cast: TBA
• It’s Christmas 1959 in Baltimore and six high school buddies, now in their twenties, reunite at their old hangout, The Fells Point Diner—before one of them ties the knot.
• Diner first postponed its Broadway opening from April 2013 to fall 2013. A staged reading was held in New York December 2013, and a regional premiere ran through January 2015 at Signature Theatre in Virginia. Delaware Theatre Company hosted a second regional tryout in December 2015.

DREAMGIRLS
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2019
• Book and lyrics by Tom Eyen, music by Henry Krieger
• Cast: TBA
• Director: Casey Nicholaw
• Revival of the 1980 musical about the rise and fall of an R&B singing group.
• New York transfer of the hit London revival, from producer Sonia Friedman.

THE FLAMINGO KID
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book and lyrics by Robert L. Freedman and music by Scott Frankel.
• Director: TBA
• Cast: TBA
• A musical adaptation of the hit 1984 Garry Marshall film.
• An 18-year-old Brooklynite leaves his humble roots behind in favor of the sexy and alluring world of the private beach club, El Flamingo.
• The world premiere will debut at Hartford Stage in the 2018–2019 season.

GYPSY
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2018
• Director: Jonathan Kent
• Cast: Imelda Staunton
• Broadway transfer of the musical biography of stripper queen Gypsy Rose Lee and her driven mother, with music by Jule Styne, lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Arthur Laurents.
• This production was a hit in London in 2015. Staunton has said the production will transfer to NY, but there has been no official word from producers.

HADESTOWN
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2018–2019 Season
• Written by Anaïs Mitchell
• Director: Rachel Chavkin
• Cast: Patrick Page, Amber Gray, Reeve Carney, Eva Noblezada
• Broadway transfer of the folk opera based on the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice,
• This production had a successful run Off-Broadway in 2016, plus a March 2017 workshop at New York Theatre Workshop. It had a November 2017 production in Edmonton, Canada. It will play the National’s Olivier Theatre November 2, 2018–January 26, 2019.

HALF TIME (formerly GOTTA DANCE)
• Theatre: TBA
• Opening: TBA
• Written by Matthew Sklar & Marvin Hamlisch (music), Nell Benjamin (lyrics), Chad Beguelin & Bob Martin (book), Ester Dean (additional music)
• Director: Jerry Mitchell
• Cast: Lillias White, Georgia Engel
• In 2007, a group of expert dancers was tasked with getting professional basketball’s first ever senior citizen dance team performance-ready. The venue? Center court. The genre? Hip-hop. Over the coming months, bonds would be formed, generation gaps would be crossed, and, eventually, some pretty hot moves would be busted.
• Based on the 2008 documentary Gotta Dance, the show made its world premiere in December 2015 at Broadway In Chicago’s Bank of America Theatre. It played the Paper Mill Playhouse in May 2018. Producers are Dori Berinstein and Bill Damaschke.

THE HONEYMOONERS
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Stephen A. Weiner (music), Peter Mills (lyrics), Dusty Kay and Bill Nuss (book)
• Director: John Rando
• Cast: Michael McGrath, Laura Bell Bundy, Michael Mastro, and Leslie Kritzer.
• Ralph Kramden and his buddy Ed Norton are back and still shooting for the moon in this world-premiere musical. After shocking their wives by winning a high profile jingle contest, they are catapulted out of Brooklyn and into the cutthroat world of Madison Avenue.
• Following a November 2014 industry presentation (from Jeffrey Finn and Goodspeed Musicals) and an April 2016 lab, the musical made its official world premiere at Paper Mill Playhouse September 28–October 29, 2017.

JOSEPHINE
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book by Ellen Weston and Mark Hampton; music by Stephen Dorff; and lyrics by John Bettis
• Director and choreographer: Joey McKneely
• Cast: Deborah Cox
• Musical based on the life of Jazz Age singer Josephine Baker.
• Played a tryout at Asolo Rep in Florida April 27–May 29, 2016.

PIECE OF MY HEART: THE BERT BERNS STORY
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Book by Daniel Goldfarb; music and lyrics by Bert Berns
• Musical Director: Steven Van Zandt
• Cast: TBA
• A musical that showcases the songbook of 1960s hitmaker Bert Berns.
• The show was first presented Off-Broadway in 2014, and is planned for Broadway by a producing team that includes Merged Work Productions, Jack Thomas, Steven Van Zandt, Paul Shaffer, Maureen Van Zandt and Joe Grano.

THE PREACHER’S WIFE
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Daniel Beaty (book), Tituss Burgess (music and lyrics)
• Director: Michael Arden
• Cast: TBA
• New musical based on the 1996 film of the same title.
• An industry reading of The Preacher’s Wife was presented in Manhattan September 12, 2016, starring Loretta Devine and Ledisi. Olivier nominee Stafford Arima directed with musical direction by James Sampliner. A second reading was presented December 11, 2017, directed by Michael Arden.

REAR WINDOW
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by John Michael Hayes (original screenplay), Keith Reddin (adaptation)
• Director: Darko Tresnjak
• Cast: TBA
• Keith Reddin (Maybe, Black Snow) adapted the play from the original 1942 short story, about a housebound man who witnesses a murder in a nearby building. The tale is best known from Alfred Hitchcock’s Academy Award-nominated 1954 film.
• Producers Charlie Lyons, Lias J. Steen, Jay Russell and Tim Guinee announced this project in June 2013 with no set timetable. The show had a regional premiere at Hartford Stage in October 2015 starring Kevin Bacon.

ROOM SERVICE
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2017-2018 Season
• Playwrights: Allen Boretz and John Murray
• Director: Michael Pressman
• Cast: TBA
• Revival of the 1937 Broadway screwball comedy about a penniless Broadway producer who will do anything to stay in his hotel room so he can get a career-saving hit off the ground.
• Produced by Michael Pressman and Andrew Ames.

THE SCENARIO
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2017-2018 season
• Written by Dan Charnas (book) with music and lyrics by multiple artists
• Director: TBA
• Cast: TBA
• A new musical set to three decades of hip-hop.
• A co-production of Russell Simmons and Universal Music Group

THE SECRET GARDEN
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2018–2019 Season
• Written by Lucy Simon (music) and Marsha Norman (book and lyrics)
• Director: Warren Carlyle
• Cast: TBA
• Revival of the 1991 musical based on Frances Hodgson Burnett’s story about an orphan girl who finds renewal when she discovers a locked, dead garden and brings it back to life.
• A co-production of Seattle’s The 5th Avenue Theatre and Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington D.C., the Broadway-bound revival played a stint in Houston October 10–22.

SHERLOCK HOLMES
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: 2017-18 season
• Written by Rachel Wagstaff and Duncan Abel
• Director: Daniel Evans
• Cast: TBA
• The Victorian British sleuth lives again in this new play, produced by Antonio R. Marion, which was scheduled to premiere in the U.K in summer 2017 before Broadway.

A SIGN OF THE TIMES
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Bruce Vilanch, based on an original story by Richard Robin, with songs by various composers
• Director: Gabriel Barre
• Choreographer: JoAnn M. Hunter
• The musical tells the story of Cindy, a young woman who moves to New York City from the Midwest in 1965 with dreams of making a difference in the world. Set against the backdrop of women’s liberation, the civil rights movement, and the Vietnam War, the musical features the songs of a generation from Grammy Award-winning artist Petula Clark and multiple hit-makers of the day, such as “Downtown,” “You Don’t Own Me,” “Don’t Sleep in the Subway,” “The Shoop Shoop Song (It’s In His Kiss),” and “The Boy From New York City.”
• Developed at Goodspeed Musicals’ Norma Terris Theatre in summer 2016. A pre-Broadway production will play Delaware Theater Company November 28–December 23, 2018.

TOP HAT
• Theatre: TBA
• Opening: TBA
• Written by Irving Berlin (music & lyrics), Chad Beguelin (book)
• Director: Christopher Gattelli
• Cast: TBA
• The glamour of Hollywood’s golden age and the glorious, tap-dancing magic of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers comes to the stage in this classic dance musical.
• Premiered on the West End in 2013 in an earlier version, directed by Matthew White and choreographed by Bill Deamer. The first New York developmental lab was held in March 2014. A second lab was held May-June 2015, directed by Christopher Gattelli. Gattelli told Playbill in January 2017 that a Broadway production is still several seasons off.

THE VISITOR
• Theatre: TBA
• Target Opening: TBA
• Written by Brian Yorkey (book and lyrics) and Tom Kitt (music)
• Director: TBA
• Cast: TBA
• Musical based on the 2007 Thomas McCarthy film of the same title about a widower who befriends a Syrian immigrant in post-9/11 New York City.
• The show is being produced by Aaron Harnick.